PETER PETTERSON says:
As I have said before, David Cunliffe cooked his own goose by not giving Phil Goff his full support during the 2011 election campaign. Goff went very close in the final analysis. But it came back to bite David Cunliffe deeply on the backside during the leadership debate. However, the highly intelligent and educated David Cunliffe does have a future in the Labour Party; he just has to keep his head down and support the labour leadership and the party. If Labour loses in 2014 David Shearer will be dog-tucker and have no political future. Then David Cunliffe will have an opportunity to be re-considered again. If David Shearer wins, he will have to wait a while. Personally I think two terms is long enough for a prime minister, of any political hue. A change of leader and prime minister can be a renewal as well for the party, and can lead to re-acceptance by the voting public. Just look at John key and see how the public can despise somebody, even if it is not reflected in the polls.
